Page 89 of Balls to the Walls

“Well, because technically, it was Theodore Roberts that got married.”

He grinned at me, then shrugged like a kid caught with his hand in the candy jar.

I was getting a headache from all of this. I was tired of trying to figure out who FNG really was and what he was doing during the year he was gone. I walked over to my computer and put it to sleep, then turned for the door.

“Hey! Where are you going?”

“Leaving.”

“But, I didn’t get to tell you about Francesca!”

I spun on my heel, getting in his face as he tried to stop himself from running into me. “I don’t care about Francesca or the suit or what you were doing for the past year.”

“That hurts,” he said with a pout on his face.

“I don’t care. You’re going to tell me some crazy story about this woman and how you married her because you had to keep your cover. Or you’ll tell me that you fell in love while picking blueberries in France!”

“Do they grow blueberries in France?” he asked.

“I don’t know! And you know what? I don’t care either. I asked for the truth and all I’m getting are more stories that feel like a bunch of lies.”

“But it’s all true!” he said, rushing around me and blocking the door.

I kneed him in the gut, then grabbed his hand and twisted until he fell to the floor in agony. I got down low, whispering in his ear. “If you want to tell your stories to someone else, be my guest, but I don’t have time for this anymore.”

I released him and walked out the door. I wanted to believe him, to think that he was on some higher expedition for the past year, but so far, all I heard were wild tales that made me question why he was even here to begin with. Maybe we were right the first time. Maybe this really wasn’t FNG, but an imposter here to infiltrate our business.

The elevator dinged just as I was walking past, and Cash stepped off. “Hey, Rae, hang on.”

I spun, crossing my arms over my chest. I wasn’t in the mood for sticking around today. All I wanted was a hot bath and an action movie to erase all the bullshit I just heard.

“What do you want?”

He shifted from one foot to the other as he waited to see what I would do. Yeah, I was being a bitch.

“Um…just wondering if you found anything out from FNG.”

“You mean, anything useful that could actually tell us something other than what we already know? Maybe the reason why he was gone for a year when he should have been home much sooner?”

“Something like that,” he muttered.

“I have nothing, Cash. The stories he’s telling me are so far-fetched that I don’t know what to believe. I wish I could say that he’s telling me something that will lead us in the right direction, but to be honest—” I cut myself off before I could say anything else.

“You don’t think he’s FNG.”

“Isn’t that ridiculous?” I laughed. “He’s right there!”

When he didn’t answer right away, I got suspicious. “Cash…what aren’t you telling me?”

“Nothing. I have no idea. I was…thinking the same thing.”

I moved closer to him, lowering my voice. “But if he’s not FNG, then who is he?”

“And why is he here?” Cash said. He grabbed my elbow and dragged me into an office, closing the door behind us. “These stories are ridiculous, which makes me think it’s really FNG.”

“But they’re also so ridiculous, you wonder if they’re made up,” I added.

“Exactly. And who would want us to think FNG was here?”

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